Letter from MEP Featuring Question Tabled to European Commission on Article 23

Dear [name omitted],

Thank you for your inquiry on the issue of Article 23 in Hong Kong. Following the oral question tabled by my colleague David Bowe MEP, I am pleased to pass on the answer from the European Commission:

Question no 71 by David Robert Bowe (H-0074/03)

Subject: Falun Gong

Following the announcement by the Hong Kong Government of substantial concessions in the implementation of the controversial anti-sedition laws (Article 23 legislation) after widespread public concern over the possible curtailment of basic freedoms in the territory, what plans does the European Commission have for monitoring developments in Hong Kong and ensuring that restrictions on freedom of religion and belief in China are a recurrent item on the agenda of the EU-China human rights dialogue?

Answer

Respect for freedom of expression, association and religion are central issues in the European Union's human rights dialogue with China. These issues were raised once again at the most recent dialogue held on 5-6 March 2003 in Athens. The Commission appreciates the political sensitivity of the legislative proposal based on Article 23 of Basic Law, which has been tabled by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government to Legislative Council on 14 February 2003. This is the most important legislative proposal since the hand-over. The Commission welcomes the fact that during the consultation period, a record number of submissions and signatures were introduced on important issues such as freedom of the press, the prescription mechanism and the definition of seditious publications. The Commission hopes that HKSAR Government will keep its promise to take into account further comments of civil society during the legislative procedure in Parliament, thus further improving the draft law. The 'One Country, Two Systems' principle continues to work reasonably well, and Hong Kong, has preserved its rule of law, human rights, civil liberties and free and open society. The Commission wholeheartedly supports the Parliament's resolution of 19 December 2002 calling on HKSAR Government to ensure that Article 23 will not be used inter alia to silence opposition, restrict freedom of speech, of the press, on freedom of association. The Commission will closely monitor further developments on this important issue, especially as regards eventual effects of future legislation in respect for human rights and civil liberties. The Commission will continue to exert pressure on the Chinese authorities for improvements regarding respect for freedom of expression, association and religion for all groups of the Chinese population including practitioners of Falun Gong.

I hope that you find this information useful.

Kind regards,

Claude Moraes

From the office of Claude Moraes
Labour MEP for London, UK